INTRODUCTION
Woody Guthrie (1912-1967) was a famous 20th-century American folk singer from Oklahoma who wrote over 3,000 songs, including “This Land Is Your Land.” The Academy of American poets describes him as the “poet of the people.” Guthrie was a noted left-wing political activist, though he denied being a communist and instead preferred to identify himself as a “commonist.” He famously wrote “this machine kills fascists” on his guitars. Guthrie wrote “This Land is Your Land” in 1940 as a response to Kate Smith’s popular rendition of the song, “God Bless America,” which he considered indifferent in the face of widespread examples of American poverty and injustice. An original draft of the song was titled, “God Blessed America.” Guthrie suffered from Huntington’s disease, a nervous system disorder that ran in his family. He died after years of hospitalization in 1967.
This Land Is Your Land
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York island,
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters;
This land was made for you and me.
As I was walking that ribbon of highway
I saw above me that endless skyway;
I saw below me that golden valley;
This land was made for you and me.
I’ve roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts;
And all around me a voice was sounding;
This land was made for you and me.
When the sun came shining, and I was strolling,
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling,
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting:
This land was made for you and me.
As I went walking I saw a sign there,
And on the sign it said “No Trespassing.”
But on the other side it didn’t say nothing.
That side was made for you and me.
In the shadow of the steeple I saw my people,
By the relief office I seen my people;
As they stood there hungry, I stood there asking
Is this land made for you and me?
Nobody living can ever stop me,
As I go walking that freedom highway;
Nobody living can ever make me turn back
This land was made for you and me.